Sewing-machine cloth-presser.



W. R. ABBRGROMBIE. SEWING MACHINE CLOTH PRESSER.

APPLIOATION FILED 13110.17, 1908.

Patented Feb. 1912.

UNITED STATES PATENT FFICE.

WILLIAM R. ABERGRO MBIE, 0F BRIDGEIEORT, CONNECTICUT, ASSIGNOR TO THE SINGER MANUFACTURING COMPANY, A CORPORATION OF NEVT JERSEY.

SEWING-MACHINE CLOTH-PRESSER.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Application filed. December 1'7, 1908.

Patented Feb. 6, 1912.

Serial No. 467,961.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that I, WILLIAM ROBERT AB- ERCROMBIE, a citizen of the United States, residing at Bridgeport, in the county of Fairfield and State of Connecticut, have in vented certain new and useful Improvements in Sewing-Machine Cloth-Pressers, of which the following is a specification, reference being had therein to the accompanying drawings.

This invention relates to'improvements in cloth-pressers for sewing machines and has for its object to provide means for feeding the material in a single plane as when stitching an ordinary seam, or for gathering the material as when forming a ruffle; and to this end the commonly employed presserbar is provided with an adjustably mounted cloth presser comprising two divergingly arranged pressing surfaces, one of said sur-.

faces coacting with the feed-dog in advance of the vertical line of needle actuation, while the other of said surfaces coacts wit-h the feed-clog at the rear of said point of needleactuation, dependent upon the nature of the production required.

In the operation of sewing machines it is well understood that if the material is acted upon by the feeddog at the rear of the needle only, it will be fed in a single plane, and if acted upon by the feed-dog only in advance of the stitch formation the material will be gathered; the latter due to the resistance offered by the action of the take-up on the sewing threads when forming and setting the stitch.

Referring to the accompanying drawings, in the several figures of which like parts are similarly designated, Figure 1 is a view in front end elevation of the head of the overhanging arm of the sewing machine, to gether with so much of the loop-taking and feeding mechanism as is deemed necessary for a proper understanding of the application of the invention; the improved mechanism being shown in side elevation with the cloth-presser adjusted to the position which it occupies when an ordinary seam is being stitched; Fig. 2 a view in side elevation of the improved mechanism shown in Fig. 1, except that the cloth-presser is illustrated as adjusted to the position which it occupies for gathering the material; Fig. 3 a front end elevation of the improved mechanism, the cloth-presser being shown in section on the line X X Fig. 1; and Figs. 4L and 5 are views in perspective, of details in construction later to be referred to.

1 represents the head of the overhanging arm of the sewing machine; 2, the needlebar; 3, the needle-bar driving shaft; 4-, the shaft flange; 5, the needle-bar actuating link connected at one end to the flange 4 and at its opposite end with the needle-bar 2; 6, the needle, 7, the needle set-screw; 8, the cloth-presser bar mounted at its lower end in the bearing 9 and at its opposite end in the tubular bushing 10 threaded into the head 1, said bar being resiliently held in its depressed position by the spring 11 confined within the tubular portion 12 of said bar and bushing; 13, the resser-bar lift collar; 14, the presserbar lifting lever; 15, a guide-bar secured in the head 1 and provided with a slot 16 into which extends the free end of the presser-bar guide collar 17 which latter is secured to the presser-bar 8 by the pinch screw 18; 19, the loop-taker provided with usual bobbin 20; 21, the

feed-dog carrying bar provided with the feed-dog 22, and 23 the throat-plate.

All of the foregoing parts are of common construction, and are herein employed simply to demonstrate the application of the invention to sewing machines generally.

Referring now to the parts more directly connected with the improved mechanism, 24 represents the cloth-presser bracket secured by screw 25 in the lower end of the presserbar 8 said bracket being provided with a lug 26 having an opening 27 through which passes the hinge-pin 28.

29 is the clotlrpresser comprising the pressing surfaces 36 and 37 hand manipulating lever 31 and oppositely arranged lugs 32 and 33, said cloth presser being hinged to the lug 26 by the hinge-pin 28 passing through the openings 34, 35 and 27.

To the upper side of the pressing surface 37 is secured by screw 38 a yielding edgeguide 39 constructed with a guidingflange 40, which latter passes through the slot 41 formed in the pressing surface 36, thus forming a wall against which the edge of the material may be guided to the action of the needle.

It is to be understood that while the guide 39 is desirable in connection with presenting certain classesof Work to the stitclrforming mechanism, it forms no part of the means for determining the. character of the product-ion, and is herein shown simply as an auxiliary device, not essential to the general application of the invention.

The bracket 24 has secured to it by pivotscrew 43 a catch-lever 42 carrying at its lower end a catch-pin 44 which, at certain times, dependent upon the nature of the production, coacts with the opening 45 in the cloth presser 29 to hold the latter against adjustment by the action of the spring 11. Between the catch-lever 42 and bracket 24 is located a spring 46 which acts upon the lever 42 to force the inner end of the screw 44 into the opening 45 whenever the lever 31 is adjusted upward, thus adjusting the pressing surface 36 of the cloth-presser to the action of the feed-dog 22, and secured in the lugs 32 and 33 of the cloth presser 29 is a stop or resistance member 48 which, in connection with the inner curved surface 49 of the bracket 24, acts to register the pressing surface 37 in operative relationship with said feed-dog.

The operation of my device is as follows :WVhen the cloth presser 29 is adjusted as shown in Fig. 1 with the pressing surface 37 in operative relationship with the feed-dog, and the pin 48 is in contact with the surface 49, the material will be advanced to the action of the needle in a single plane, as when stitching an ordinary seam, due to the feed-dog acting upon the material at the rear of the line of the needle actuation. But if it is desired to gather or ruffle the material the operator, through the manipulation of the lever 31, rocks the cloth presser 29 until the catch pin 44 enters the opening 45 in the cloth presser, thereby adjusting the pressing surface 36 into operative re lationship with the said feed-dog, as shown in Fig. 2, thus causing the feed-dog to actupon the material in advance of the line of the needle actuation.

From the foregoing it will be understood that through the manipulation of the lever 42 the spring 11 is permitted to effect the adjustment of the cloth presser 29, as shown in Fig. 1, and that through the manipulation of the lever 31 the pin 44 is caused to cated on opposite sides of the line of needleactuation, and means for securing said clothdresser a ainst accidental ad'ustment. U i

2. In a combination cloth-presser for plain stitching and gathering, a springactuated presser-bar, a bracket carried by said bar and provided with divergently arranged straight cloth-engaging surfaces, a catch-lever for registering one of said surfaces in operative relationship with the material being acted upon, and a resistance member for registering the other of said surfaces in like relationship with said ma terial.

3. In a combination cloth-presser for plain stitching and gathering, a spring-actuated presser-bar, a bracket carried by said bar and provided with a directly coi'ineeted hand-lever and with divergently arranged straight cloth-engaging surfaces, and means including a catch-lever for securing said cloth-presser against accidental adjustment.

4. In a combination cloth-presser for plainstitching and gathering, a spring-actuated presser-bar, a bracket carried by said bar and provided with an integrally formed hand-lever and with divergently arranged straight cloth-engaging surfaces, and means including a catch-lever for securing said cloth-presser against accidental adjustment.

In testimony whereof, I have signed my name to this specification, in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

IVILLIAM R. ABERCROMBIE.

Witnesses:

GEORGE E. CONGER, Annie M. DONII-IU.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents,

' Washington, D. C. 

